Journalists in the Gaza Strip held a symbolic work stoppage on Monday as part of a protest to demand Israel explain why its troops killd a Reuters cameraman in the Palestinian enclave two months ago.
Reuters and other media organisations say the Israeli army's failure to explain why its troops fired tank shells that killed cameraman Fadel Shana and eight other civilians, some of them children, has made it difficult to update safety advice for their staff and so has handicapped coverage from Gaza.
Reuters - read more-- Fadel Shana, 24, was killed by several darts, known as flechettes, which burst from a shell fired by an Israeli tank on April 16 about 5:30 p.m. The tank firing and shell bursting were the final images on tape before Shana's camera was destroyed.
-- Eight other civilians aged between 12 and 20 were killed, six of them aged under 16. At least seven other bystanders aged from 10 to 18 were also hit. None was armed or a militant. Reuters soundman Wafa Abu Mizyed, 25, was wounded in the wrist.
-- Shana and Abu Mizyed were wearing blue body armour marked "Press" and stood next to a car bearing "TV" and "Press" markings on a country road some 100 metres (yards) southeast of Gaza's main highway. Two Merkava-4 main battle tanks stood on a ridge about 1.5 km (a mile) to the southeast, facing northwest.
-- Twenty or more children, some on bicycles, were present between Shana and the main Gaza highway 100 metres (yards) behind him. No witness heard or saw militant activity in the area all day.
-- An Israeli observation drone was circling over the area.
-- The first shell killed Shana and others. The tank then fired a second flechette shell, perhaps a minute later. Journalists who arrived filmed a third explosion at 5:40 p.m. Shana's car was burnt out but its diesel tank had not exploded.
FACTBOX-Death of Reuters Gaza cameraman
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